View full sizeShelby County Manager Alex Dudchock talks to the Pelham City Council, including President Rick Hayes, during the municipal meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2014, that included the board approving a partnership agreement to develop a feasibility study for a hotel and conference center in Oak Mountain State Park. (Martin J. Reed / mreed@al.com)

PELHAM, Alabama -- The City of Pelham tonight approved an
agreement with Shelby County and various state entities to create a feasibility
study for a hotel and conference center at Oak Mountain State Park.

"I don't think I can say strongly enough how excited we
are to partner with the county," Council President Rick Hayes said tonight. "This
is an opportunity that goes well beyond Pelham, Shelby County. This is a regional
opportunity."

The feasibility study that will happen in the coming
weeks will examine factors including market need, location, number of hotel rooms
and conference center size for the possible facility located in Alabama's
largest state park, which rests inside Pelham's city limits.

"It is a first step," Hayes said. "We need to go through
the process. We need to determine what kind of facility ... what would be
appropriate."

The council unanimously approved a resolution and agreement
signed by the project's partnership representatives who include Gov. Robert Bentley,
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Commissioner Gunter Guy Jr.,
State Parks Director Greg Lein, Shelby County Manager Alex Dudchock and Shelby
County Economic and Industrial Development Authority Executive Director James
Dedes.

"This is just another project ... along with updating the
master plan, looking at current offerings" including recreation and amenities at
the 9,940-acre park, Dudchock said. "We still have a lot of work to do."

The agreement states the goal "is to promote economic
development and tourism through the potential construction of a lodging and
conference venue along with additional recreational opportunities" at the park.

Shelby County, Pelham and the Alabama Department of
Conservation and Natural Resources will each contribute up to $25,000 toward
the feasibility study and, if warranted, preliminary design drawings, according
to the agreement. The county's economic development agency will provide $20,000
to the project.

"We view this as merely the next logical progression to
look at hopefully maximizing one of our economic catalysts in the county,"
Dudchock said.

Many factors have not been determined concerning the type
of facility at the park. "We do not have a size and scope of that because that
will be a product of the feasibility study," Dudchock said.

"We're not looking at this to be a small project," he
added. "We want to look at it to be a full-service hotel and conference
facility to be located at the appropriate place to be determined. We don't have
the specific site selected. That will be part of the analysis."

There is no timeline set concerning development of a
facility in the park, Dudchock said.

Lein called the project "a very unique opportunity" and
one that is "very logical" for Oak Mountain State Park with the partnership.

"The park had an older master plan that basically
described the opportunity to have a lodge and conference center in the park,"
Lein said. "It was not a hard decision to us to agree to moving forward with the
feasibility study."

The Greater Shelby Chamber of Commerce will also
participate in the project.

"One of the things I'm most excited about is the demonstration
and example of this partnering with state government and local government," Lein
said.